Devices known heretofore, such as automatic pipetting machines or automated flow systems, all have the great disadvantage that they operate in series only. Because each sample to be analyzed must be subjected to a series of process steps, such as pipetting, centrifuging, contacting with a reaction liquid, etc., it has not been possible in the past to provide a device which would subject a large number of samples simultaneously and parallel to each other to the necessary steps of the process.
The introduction of the so-called "solid phase" technique, in which the liquid sample to be examined is placed into contact with a solid substance of an immobilized, biologically active material, made possible the application of a flow system. This greatly simplified the analytical procedure and facilatated its execution. The speed and the capacity of this technique is, however, again limited by the fact that the individual samples must be handled in sequence.